Electronic mail (“e-mail”) applications for mobile devices are typically provided as scaled-down versions of e-mail applications designed for desktop computing devices. However, the limited resolution and small display screens of mobile devices can affect, for example, the relative ease with which certain tasks are performed by users, the amount of information that may be displayed on a screen, and the manner in which that information is displayed.
For example, a summary of e-mail messages received by a user is often provided by a messaging application to users in the form of a list. The message list typically includes message details that are extracted from the headers of the received messages, such as, for example, at least one of the subject of the message, the sender's name and/or e-mail address, the time the message was sent, and the size of the message. Users wishing to examine the main content (e.g. text in the message body) of a particular message would generally need to initially select a message, and then open the message. Subsequently, after the message has been opened, the user can examine the contents of the message, and decide on the next course of action to take with respect to the message (e.g. send a reply, forward the message, store the message, delete the message).
However, opening individual messages in order to determine the desired action to be taken for each message in the message list, especially where there may be numerous messages for a user to consider, can be cumbersome and time-consuming for the user. This can be particularly tiresome where the messages are to be reviewed by the user on a mobile device, since the message selecting and opening actions are usually initiated by repetitive thumb movements.
In desktop messaging applications, a preview pane may be provided, separate from the area in which the message list is displayed. Within the preview pane, at least a portion of the main content of a selected message (e.g. text or images in the message body) is displayed to the user. Accordingly, the user need not open each message individually, in order to examine the contents of a message. Instead, the user may, for example, simply highlight individual message entries in a list of received messages, and preview the contents of a given highlighted message in the preview pane. If the information provided in the preview pane is sufficient to allow the user to determine what action should be taken with the message, then the action may usually be taken without opening the message. Unfortunately, due to the resource limitations of mobile devices, and in particular, the relatively small display screens typically associated with such devices, providing a dedicated space for a preview pane on a mobile device display may be neither practical nor feasible.